In less than 10 weeks from today the voters of Michigan will be asked to vote on the ballot question titled Proposal 1, or as it is commonly being called the “road fix bill”. Here are the main elements of Proposal 1:

An increase in transportation revenue of $1.3 billion, with $1.2 billion a year going to roads and about $112 million going to mass-transit.

Removal of the sales tax from fuel sales.

An increase in wholesale fuel taxes that will result in about a 3-cent-a-gallon increase from the average fuel price.

An increase of $45 million in vehicle registration fees and $50 million in fees for heavy trucks.

Update: The program I mention toward the end of this story was called “The Win Machine” and it was delayed for use but eventually went up and was successfully used by 2500 people, a significant number. Also, and this did deserve a mention earlier today, but the miabsetee.com app/site was VERY successful and helped both many Democrats and Republicans register to vote. Lon and his leadership team deserve lots of kudos for that piece of brilliance.That clarification was important to include.

Tomorrow Democrats from across the state will convene in downtown Detroit for their semi-annual convention. The spring convention will hold no surprises tomorrow.…

Today is December 15, 2014 and that, in itself might mean many things to you. However, for political observers, pundits, analyzers, etc., today marks the final days of the Michigan Legislative agenda for 2014 and will also usher in, in a few very short weeks, a new House and Senate. This is the last week of what is known as Lame Duck, a time when, at least in the last few election cycles, has ushered in laws that have been shocking, partisan, and hurtful even. Lame Duck is NOT a legislative effort required by law. In fact, Lame Duck is not anything but one last chance, especially for those who are term-limited breast beaters, to get in one last dig and attempt to force upon the people of the state of Michigan new laws that they will not have to be held accountable for.…

This past week I have been mired in the aftermath of the Board of Regents meeting at Eastern Michigan University, where a politically appointed and partisan Board of Regents ignored the will of those in attendance, the thousands who signed a petition, mountains of evidence that prove that Educational Achievement Authority (EAA) is failing students in Detroit as well as their own appointed president, Sue Martin, and decided to continue EMUs and ongoing relationship with the toxic and controversial EAA.

Eastern Michigan University is well-respected as a nationwide leading University in preparing teachers for the real world, and the EMU College of Education is held up as an example of excellence and holds that distinction, I am venturing to guess, because they have made some hard and even controversial choices over many decades, to make sure standards and practices were cutting edge and seasoned.…

GOP.com, the website for the Republican National Committee (RNC), is currently featuring a blog entry titled, “Another ObamaCare Promise From Peters And Schauer Falls Flat In Michigan”. In it, they continue to senselessly pound the dead Obamacare horse as they attack Michigan Democrats Mark Schauer, our gubernatorial candidate, and Gary Peters, our candidate for the U.S. Senate.

This time, they are highlighting the fact that a handful of health insurance companies that offer policies under the exchange set up under the Affordable Care Act are asking for price increases and offer this titillating subtitle: Hundreds Of Thousands Of Michiganders Face Double-Digit Premium Increases Under ObamaCare.…

As Republicans saw their dream of Healthcare.gov never becoming functional enough to work fall apart this week, it became clear that they’re about to face a nightmare when it comes to immigration reform.

When asked if reform would happen in 2014, Speaker John Boehner told reporters on Thursday, “I’ve learned not to make future promises from this podium.”

Making Detroit into America’s very own Third World country is decidedly NOT the solution

In the television series The West Wing, Republican candidate for president Arnold Vinick is asked in a debate about debt relief for impoverished countries. “Senator, are you saying you’re opposed to debt relief for impoverished countries?” Vinick is asked by the moderator.

“No,” he replied. “We should forgive the debts but it’s not going to help… that’s not going to help those countries very much.”

When he’s asked what will help them, his answer is, “Tax cuts”.

That scenario will play out tomorrow in Detroit when Senator Rand Paul visits to unveil his new proposal for helping impoverished cities: tax cuts.…

Dear goddess, no. Just no.

Senator Rand Paul, who has publicly told America that he does not support the part of the Civil Rights Act that forbids businesses from doing things like preventing African Americans from entering their premises, will be in Detroit on December 6th to open the Republican African American Engagement Office.

That advice wasn't good for consumers. But it sure must have been good for Trott's business handling foreclosures.

David Trott, chairman and CEO of one of the country's largest law firms specializing in foreclosure services for the mortgage industry -- and a Republican candidate running in Michigan's 11th Congressional District -- has got some explaining to do.
In September 2007, subprime mortgage firms were declaring bankruptcy, other financial institutions were refusing to take on more subprime loans and millions of Americans were at risk of losing their homes. At that same time, Trott appeared on the Michigan TV program "Due Process" and called subprime mortgages "a perfectly appropriate product."
Yes, David Trott defended subprime mortgages even as the subprime mortgage market was collapsing. That collapse contributed significantly to the larger financial crisis that wreaked havoc on the global economy.
Trott's statements on "Due Process" make it clear he didn't see anything wrong with endorsing a product he knew very well would result in even more foreclosures -- risking the homes of average Americans while driving more business to his law firm.
Click through for video and more.

They’re trying to turn back the clock to re-fight the 2012 election. Or the Civil War.

At first, many of us had trouble keeping track of what the Tea Party GOP wants in exchange for ending the government shutdown and raising the debt ceiling. But now it’s clear: What they’re really after are the same things they’ve wanted since 2010, and even earlier. Certainly since President Obama was first elected in 2008. The fact that the rest of the country wants to move forward with continuing to rebuild the economy and creating jobs doesn’t make a dent in their stubborn ideology.…

Tony Trupiano is the host of the radio program, The Voice of the People, heard on blogtalkradio.com every Monday through Friday from 9 AM until Noon ET and the author of two books, and has been part of the progressive media landscape for 20-plus years. Known as "The Voice of Labor" and as an activist & advocate, Tony has no problem showing up for a good fight. Follow him on Twitter @tonytrupiano.